Why do my baby chicks die?

[Littlefrenchyinbigtexas]

Apart from the lack of a proper heat source it is not advisable to put new hatchlings with chicks that are already 6 weeks old. They will get trampled on and pushed around until they die. A few days of age difference will be ok, but not 6 weeks.

Thank you. Got a lot to learn on raising chicks....

 

[LaFleche]

Nooo...
getting a heat plate on amazon now!!!!

Very good!

Thank you. Got a lot to learn on raising chicks....

I am sorry you lost two of your chicks. When raising your next chicks you will have much more experience. We all were beginners once.

 

[MysteryChicken]

I use a heating plate, & it's nice, & hot. Not hot enough to actually burn my hand, I can touch it without being burned, & the chicks pretty much wean themselves off from it faster then a heat lamp.

 

[yakitori]

I used a normal lamp too. make sure it's an incandescent bulb, fluorescent and leds won't give out enough heat. what I did was to shine it on the outside wall of the brooder. I had it right up against the wall near the floor. It warmed that one wall up, and when the chicks needed it, they snuggled up against the warm wall and bedding. Now that you only have one chick I would be extra careful about keeping her warm as she doesn't have any buddies left to snuggle up against

 

[claudiabostic]

90 degrees is absolutely too hot. Let the chicks tell you if they are too hot or cold. I don’t use a thermometer in my brooder, I base it on the chicks behavior and simply lower or raise the heat lamp. But definitely DO NOT need 90 degree heat past the first day or two. People stress way too much over heat; it’s not an exact science it’s about observing their behavior and adjusting the lamp accordingly.

Since the heat plate only heats the area under it and not the entire brooder it's easy for the chicks to move away from it if they are too warm. I don't set it by thermometer, but by how warm it feels to my hand and by the chicks behavior. At first they spend a lot of time under it but after 2 or 3 weeks they spend most of their time away from it. The rest of the brooder can be quite cool as long as the chicks have access to warmth when they want it.

 

[MrFluffyandGirls]

I use a regular lamp to has to be at least 150W and it puts out heat. Never had a fire and chicks can go under it or away from it. Pay close attention that your older chicks aren't roughing up the younger ones and if it's working that's good but if you notice excessive bullying you may want to divide them for safety reasons.

 

[NatJ]

a normal lamp close to them to keep them warm. It is not a heat lamp, as I am kinda scared of the fire hazard with these lamps.
We are on the Texas gulf coast, so going down to low 70’s now at night. Probably a few degrees warmer indoor.
This is my second baby chick dead in a few days.
Any idea why? Do you think they are just two cold?

Put a thermometer in there, right under the heat, and see how warm it actually is. If it is warm enough, then the temperature was not the problem.

Baby chicks do not care what kind of lamp you have--they just need the right temperature, no matter how you make that happen.

You can usually judge by the behavior of the chicks, but a thermometer is really handy when you have a problem and need to find out what it is.

 

[Littlefrenchyinbigtexas]

I use a regular lamp to has to be at least 150W and it puts out heat. Never had a fire and chicks can go under it or away from it. Pay close attention that your older chicks aren't roughing up the younger ones and if it's working that's good but if you notice excessive bullying you may want to divide them for safety reasons.

Thank you. I thought the older ones were keeping the younger ones warm actually, I will pay more attention.
I put my only little one left aside for the night. Back into the incubator and warm.

 

[FuzzyCritters]

You really need to get another chick if the last chick is all alone!

 

[Tonyroo]

The bulb in the lamp looked like an LED bulb. No heat bulb. Lol.
Leave and learn.